Department for Transport

Southern: Strikes

Lord Lucas: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the reasons for the Southern Rail strike set out by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers in their publication Southern Rail Dispute: The Facts.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Driver Controlled Operation (DCO) is, as the RMT openly acknowledge, used on nearly a third of the UK rail network; it is a safe operating system that both the RMT and ALSEF have agreed can be used, and has been in use for over 30 years. Indeed, if one includes London Underground services more than half of trains running in Britain operate with drivers controlling the doors. Daily, across the UK thousands of DCO trains, driven by both RMT and ASLEF members, operate safely. Ireland, Germany, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada are among other countries where such trains operate. The new on-board supervisor roles will enable staff to be available to spend more time helping passengers. These staff are trained to manage emergencies, and there are no plans to reduce the number of on-board staff on Southern trains. It is the simple truth that the independent rail regulator, the Office for Rail and Road ORR, has said that with suitable equipment, proper procedures and competent staff in place, DCO is a safe method of working. Under DCO, the driver uses a combination of cameras, monitors or mirrors to check along the length of the train that it is safe for it to depart, instead of a guard or conductor making a visual check. Only the on-board safety systems and a driver can stop a train when things go wrong. That is why having drivers check the platform on departure, is the safest way of operating a train. DCO is already used on services as diverse as London Underground, London Overground, Southeastern – Metro and HS1 services, Southern – Metro and Brighton main line services (in 9 car formation), Thameslink – all services, Great Northern – all services, Chiltern – from London as far north as Banbury, Great Western Railway – Heathrow Connect and suburban including some Oxford services, Heathrow Express, Abellio Greater Anglia and c2c. Again, we strongly urge the unions to get back round the negotiating table and resolve this nonsensical dispute.

Southern: Industrial Disputes

Lord Lucas: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the long-term implications for passengers of the different means of resolving the current industrial dispute between the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers and ASLEF, and Southern Rail and Govia Thameslink Railway; and whether they intend to take steps to ascertain the views of passengers on how the dispute should be resolved.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Passengers simply want to see this futile dispute resolved. This is doing nothing but hurting passengers, and we urge the unions involved to get around the negotiating table with Govia Thameslink Railway and stop inflicting unnecessary pain on passengers on this part of the network. As we have repeatedly made clear, this is a dispute between employers and employees. However the Secretary of State met with ASLEF - before they decided to strike - and I strongly urge both ASLEF and RMT to get back round the negotiating table with the serious intention of actually resolving this dispute. The Secretary of State for Transport and the Rail Minister have repeatedly said if the unions suspend their strike action, they will meet with them.

London-Exeter Railway Line

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the publication in December 2016 of the report by the Office of Rail and Road into station usage, what is their assessment of the feasibility of converting the present single track railway on the Exeter to London Waterloo mainline between Tisbury and Dinton, in Wiltshire, to double track as it was previously.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Network Rail have assessed the potential growth in passenger and freight demand in the period up until 2043, including future demand on the line between London, Salisbury and Exeter as part of the Wessex Route study which was published in August 2015. The study identified a potential scheme to upgrade the line between Exeter and Salisbury through the creation of additional double track sections between Salisbury and Yeovil as an option for delivery in the period after 2025.

Railways: Disability

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all trains operated under driver-only operation will be fully accessible to disabled passengers.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Passenger train operators have a mandatory requirement under the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that reasonable adjustment is made to ensure that the services they provide are accessible to disabled passengers, regardless of the specific staffing arrangements they employ to deliver services. This includes complying with accessibility regulations that set the standards for the physical layout and features of their trains. We are committed to improving accessibility on the rail network. Roughly 70% of train fleets operating passenger services currently meet modern accessibility standards, with work on the remaining vehicles due to be completed by 2020. An operator is also required, by a condition of its operator’s licence, to have a Disabled People’s Protection Policy, which sets out how it provides assistance to disabled passengers. This is approved by the Office of Rail and Road.

Railways: Disability

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether all stations on train lines operating under driver-only operation will be staffed throughout all hours of operation, and whether it will be the responsibility of station staff to assist disabled passengers onto trains where required.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Station staffing levels are a matter for the train operating companies. However, train operators are required by law to make reasonable adjustments to allow disabled people to access their services. All operators must participate in the Passenger Assist pre-booking system which also covers normally-unstaffed stations. They must also provide alternative transport, at no additional cost, to anyone unable to use a particular station; usually an accessible taxi.

Railways: Disability

Baroness Randerson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it will be the responsibility of on-board supervisors of trains operating under driver-only operation to assist disabled passengers when required, and whether there will be an on-board supervisor on every train and in all circumstances.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: On-board supervisors (OBS’s) on Southern services are responsible for assisting all passengers who need it, including passengers with accessibility requirements. Southern will have more on-board staff on trains than before, but in exceptional cases where the OBS is not available the train will still be able to run, to avoid inconveniencing potentially many hundreds of passengers. If anyone with accessibility needs is about to travel on a train where an OBS is not available, the operator will make alternative arrangements.

A34

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 January (HL4289), what plans they have for increasing the volume of heavy freight transported by rail, to provide relief to the A34 prior to the implementation of the updated route strategy.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Solent to Midlands Route Strategy will identify locations, including the A34, with specific performance pressures and opportunities for improvement, and will inform HM Government’s future decisions in the second Road Investment Strategy, covering investment in the strategic road network beyond 2020. Alongside this, Government supports greater use of rail for freight transport and is providing £235 million of funding during Control Period 5 (2014 – 2019) to the Strategic Freight Network Fund. This funding is being utilised to increase the capacity and capability of our rail network to support rail freight. Specifically in the A34 area, considerable investment is being made within Control Period 5 on the routes out of Southampton to allow longer and heavier freight trains to run. These enhancements provide the capability and capacity to transport more freight by rail, helping to take lorries off our roads.

Roads: Capital Investment

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 December 2016 (HL3362), whether any of the six AS2011 schemes were justified on the basis of a reduction in travel times of two minutes or less; and if so, which.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Road investment decisions are supported with a five-part business case. The economic case aims to provide a comprehensive overview of a proposal’s impacts. These include a wide range of social and environmental factors, as well as time savings and economic impacts. The proportion of time saving benefits which are attributed to average time savings ‎per trip of two minutes or less varies between projects, depending on the nature of the scheme, and is not centrally held.

Aviation: Hazardous Substances

The Countess of Mar: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the statutory duties of (1) the Civil Aviation Authority, and (2) owners of British passenger aircraft, towards passengers and crew members to (a) prevent exposure to hazardous substances, and (b) manage incidents where passengers and crew are exposed to hazardous substances, when an aircraft is outside British airspace.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is under a statutory duty to provide assistance and advice to the Secretary of State including by the provision of advice on the health of air passengers and crew, and investigating new aviation health concerns. The CAA is responsible for issuing Certificates of Airworthiness at a national level for individual aircraft. One requirement for a certificates of airworthiness to be issued is that it must be demonstrated that the aircraft and its engines must not have design features which experience has shown to be hazardous, and the design should take account of the effects of component deterioration or failure to minimise the concentration of potentially toxic products. The CAA has a further duty under the Civil Aviation (Working Time) Regulations 2004. This applies to persons employed as crew members for commercial air transport, employers have a duty to ensure that “each crew member employed by him is at all times…provided with adequate health and safety protection” so as to preserve the health and safety of the crew from “any hazards that may threaten his health or safety during the course of his undertaking his work and are capable of being provided by his employer.” This duty does not extend to passengers. The CAA is the enforcing authority for the 2004 Regulations in respect of the occupational health and safety of crew members while they are on board. For owners of aircraft in Great Britain, specific duties in relation to health and safety are imposed on employers by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, which the Health & Safety Executive is responsible for enforcing. In relation to the management of incidents where passengers and crew are exposed to hazardous substances, immediate responses and subsequent actions, including investigation, are the aircraft operator's responsibility under its emergency procedures and safety management systems. There may also be applicable airport procedures.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Insolvency

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the survey finding by the Association of Business Recovery Professionals that 72 per cent of their members who responded to the survey believe that the outcome of the referendum will lead to an increase in corporate insolvencies, what plans they have in place to deal with an increase in insolvencies.

Lord Prior of Brampton: We are committed to supporting those businesses that trade with the EU and wider international markets, as well as continuing to encourage record foreign direct investment that supports business and communities up and down the country. Due to the decisions this Government has taken, the British economy is fundamentally strong and we are well-positioned to negotiate our departure from the EU. Employment is at a record high and there are almost a million new businesses in our country since 2010. Departments are undertaking analysis to understand the impacts that withdrawal from the EU will have on businesses and consumers.

Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what the net costs of running and funding the domestic and non-domestic renewable heat incentive schemes were in (1) England, (2) Scotland and (3) Wales, each year since their inception, and what they expect this to cost in the next three years.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme provides financial incentives to households and non-domestic consumers, including public bodies and charities, to help bridge the gap between the cost of renewable heating systems and conventional alternatives.The non-domestic RHI scheme launched in November 2011 and the domestic RHI launched in April 2014. Both schemes are administered by Ofgem and are open to England, Wales and Scotland; however scheme costs are calculated collectively for Great Britain. Table one: Scheme administration costs (amount paid to Ofgem to administer the scheme. The domestic set-up costs are included in the non-domestic figure)YearNon-domesticDomesticNotes2010-11£1.5m02011-12£4.8m02012-13£5m0Includes domestic RHI preparation costs2013-14£7m£4.7m2014-15£7.7m£6.6m2015-16£6.8m£5.3m Table two: Total subsidies paid (amount paid to scheme participants)YearNon-domesticDomestic2010-11002011-12£2m02012-13£27m02013-14£52m02014-15£136m£23m2015-16£295m£77m Table three: Budget to fund subsidy payments to existing and future participants in both schemes to 2021YearBudget2015-16£430m2016-17£640m2017-18£780m2018-19£900m2019-20£1010m2020-21£1150m

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Syria: Peace Negotiations

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider a future political settlement in Syria which includes President Assad.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: ​We believe that a genuine political settlement is the only sustainable solution to the Syrian crisis. The atrocities the Asad regime has committed make it impossible for him to unite the country and bring peace to Syria. Syria needs a transition away from the rule of Asad to a new government, which is able to meet the needs of the Syrian people, and with which the international community could cooperate fully in the fight against terrorism. The internationally agreed Geneva Communiqué of 2012 – ratified by UN Security Resolution 2254 - sets out how this could happen and lead to a process in which the Syrian people could fairly and freely decide their future.

Forced Marriage

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to revise their policy of not paying for the repatriation of British citizens forced to marry abroad, and whether they will provide the Forced Marriage Unit with the relevant funds.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is not funded to provide financial assistance to British nationals overseas. However, we can provide emergency loans on a discretionary basis, in very exceptional circumstances, when people want to return home from overseas and they are unable to do this via any other means. Emergency loans are from public funds and therefore we have an obligation to recover the money.The Government recognises the risks that victims of forced marriage can face and the challenges that they may encounter on the return to the UK. This is why emergency loans are offered to assist British nationals in these circumstances. Through the joint FCO and Home Office Forced Marriage Unit, we work very closely with partner organisations in the UK, including the police, social services and healthcare professionals, to ensure that those at risk are appropriately protected.We regularly review all aspects of our consular policy and as such will be reviewing our policy on issuing emergency loans in early 2017.

North Korea: Business

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 19 December, whether any UK funds or UK nationals provide specialised teaching and training of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea nationals in business and economic management entrepreneurship; and if so, what assessment they have made of the impact of such training on North Korea’s economy and, in particular, that country’s acquisition of illicit goods.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK, through our Embassy in Pyongyang, funded business and economic training in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) between 2013-2015, delivered by an international Non-Governmental Organisation. This training focused on providing ordinary North Koreans with the skills needed to run their own small businesses and to expose them to internationally accepted practices in economics and trade. These projects have been fully audited to ensure they meet the criteria for Foreign and Commonwealth Office funding. We are not aware of any UK funding or UK nationals providing teaching and training which could contribute to the DPRK's acquisition of illicit goods. The UK is not currently funding any such training activities.

Egypt: Human Rights

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to make representations to the government of Egypt to investigate allegations of enforced disappearance and torture, including the case of Italian student Giulio Regeni, and to bring to justice all those suspected of criminal responsibility for such abuses.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We raised our concerns around enforced detentions and torture in our national statement at the UN Human Rights Council (UNRHC) in September 2016 under our Item 4 statement (human rights situations that require the UNHRC's attention). We look to the Egyptian Government to implement the rights guaranteed in Egypt's constitution and investigate all reports of abuses, including enforced disappearances and torture.In April 2016, in response to a public petition, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office outlined the steps the Government has taken to encourage a full investigation into Giulio Regeni's death. We have continued to offer our support to Italy and urge the Egyptian Government to cooperate fully with the Italian investigators to bring Mr Regeni's killers to justice as soon as possible. Her Majesty's Ambassadors to Cairo and Rome have raised Mr Regeni's case with the Egyptian and Italian authorities. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) has raised Mr Regeni's case with the Egyptian Ambassador to London and discussed the case with representatives of Cambridge University, where Mr Regeni was studying. The Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) also discussed Mr Regeni's case with former Prime Minister Renzi in July 2016.

Israeli Settlements: Crimes of Violence

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 5 December 2016 (HL3820), what action they will take regarding the ongoing Israeli settler violence against Palestinians.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We will continue to raise our concerns with the Israeli authorities over this issue. These concerns include the importance of bringing extremist settlers who are responsible for violence and intimidation to justice.

Marah Jawdat Moussa Bakr

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding the reported prison sentence given to Marah Jawdat Moussa Bakr for the attempted stabbing of an Israeli border guard.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: ​We are not planning to make any representations to the Israeli authorities over this issue.

Israeli Settlements

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what response they will make to the government of Israel in the light of reports of a proposal by an Israeli minister to annex Ma’aleh Adumim.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We are deeply concerned by reports of proposals to annex Ma’aleh Adumi. The UK continues to support a negotiated settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In a final status agreement, any changes to the 1967 borders through land swaps must be agreed by both sides.

Israeli Settlements

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they are giving to freezing the assets of, and imposing travel bans on, individuals responsible for undermining Palestinian territorial integrity in the Occupied Territories by expropriations and settlement expansions.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Government has made its position clear. We are firmly opposed to sanctions or boycotts against Israel. Such moves would not support the progress we need towards resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel: Palestinians

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the remarks on Middle East Peace made by US Secretary of State John Kerry on 28 December 2016, whether those remarks were in line with the UK Government's policy on this issue, and if so, whether UK policy has changed.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK Government’s longstanding policy on the Middle East peace process is well known. We support a negotiated settlement leading to a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state. It has long been the UK Government position that Israeli settlement activity is illegal and undermines the viability of two states for two peoples which is why we supported in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 (2016). But we have also always been clear that settlements are far from the only obstacle to peace: terrorism and incitement must also end.

Burundi: Diplomatic Service

The Lord Bishop of Durham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have for a permanent representative in Burundi.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office operates a permanent British Embassy Office in the Burundian capital Bujumbura. The non-resident British Ambassador to Burundi is based in Kigali, Rwanda.

Cyprus: Military Bases

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have recently been approached by the Republic of Cyprus or the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus concerning the future of UK bases on the island of Cyprus in relation to talks aimed at settling the dispute over the division of the island.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The purpose of the current talks on Cyprus is to reach a sustainable settlement based on a bi-communal, bi-zonal federation with political equality, as set out by the two Leaders in their Joint Statement of 11 February 2014.We are in regular dialogue with the two sides in Cyprus. In the course of these discussions we have reiterated our offer, originally made to the United Nations in 2004, to cede nearly half the territory of the Sovereign Base Areas to a reunited Cyprus to help facilitate a settlement. This offer will not adversely affect the ability of the Bases to carry out their vital work to promote our security and that of the wider region.

France: Foreign Relations

Lord Stevens of Ludgate: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what contacts the British Embassy in Paris has had with Marine Le Pen; whether they are comparable with contacts they have had with the other Presidential candidates; and if not, why not.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The British Embassy in Paris has not had contact with Marine Le Pen, in line with longstanding policy.

Department for International Development

Pakistan: Overseas Aid

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much UK aid was given to Pakistan over the past decade; and how much has been earmarked for the Benazir Income Support Programme between 2012 and 2020.

Lord Bates: Aid to Pakistan between financial years 2006/2007 and 2016/2017 totals £2.324 billion. Between 2012 and 2020, DFID has earmarked £420.3 million to the Government of Pakistan’s Benazir Income Support Programme. £120m of this was provided between 2014 and 2016 through the Stability and Growth Programme; this was an earmarked sum within a Financial Aid package linked to an IMF programme. Funding is only disbursed if robust Disbursement Linked Indicators are met.

Department for Education

Apprentices

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many level 3 apprenticeships they have projected will start in 2016–17; and how many of those are expected to be for (1) 16–18 year olds, and (2) 18–24 year olds.

Lord Nash: Apprenticeships are jobs and the volume and mix of apprenticeships will depend on the decisions employers make. The Department has made some estimates of the numbers of apprenticeships in future years, which are set out below. These estimates will be subject to change in the light of demand from employers and will continue to be revised in light of new intelligence and data. Age groupLevel 3 apprenticeship starts for 2016/17 academic year16-1839,00019-2354,000

Apprentices

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many level 3 apprenticeships they have projected will start in (1) 2017–18, and (2) 2018–19.

Lord Nash: Apprenticeships are jobs and the volume and mix of apprenticeships will depend on the decisions employers make. The Department has made some estimates of the numbers of apprenticeships in future years, which are set out below. These estimates will be subject to change in the light of demand from employers and will continue to be revised in light of new intelligence and data. Academic year2017/182017/18Level 3 apprenticeship starts197,000201,000

Apprentices

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many level 4 apprenticeships they have projected will start in 2016–17.

Lord Nash: Apprenticeships are jobs and the volume and mix of apprenticeships will depend on the decisions employers make. The Department has made some estimates of the numbers of apprenticeships in future years, which are set out below. These estimates will be subject to change in the light of demand from employers and will continue to be revised in light of new intelligence and data. The Department estimates that 6,000 level 4 apprenticeships will start in the 2016/17 academic year.

Children: Internet

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to implement the recommendations of the Children's Commissioner, made on 4 January, that the rights of children online are upheld, including through the creation of a digital ombudsman and the inclusion of digital citizenship in the national curriculum.

Lord Nash: The Department welcomes the work of the Children’s Commissioner on this important area. We will carefully consider this report as part of our ongoing work to make the internet a safer place for children.The Department for Education is part of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS), a group of more than 200 organisations established in 2010 drawn from across government, industry, law enforcement, academia, parenting and charity sectors which work in partnership to keep children safe online. The group is chaired by three Government ministers: the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Sport, Tourism and Heritage, the Minister for Vulnerability, Safeguarding and Countering Extremism and the Minister of State for Vulnerable Children and Families.UKCCIS has produced advice for schools and colleges on responding to incidents of sexting and guidance for school governors to help them support their school leaders to keep children safe online. Other UKCCIS achievements include the roll-out of free, family-friendly ISP level filters and the deployment of friendly Wi-Fi filtering in public spaces.All schools are required to teach a balanced and broadly based curriculum that promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils, and prepares them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life. Maintained schools have to follow the new National Curriculum, which, from September 2014 has focused on essential knowledge, allowing teachers and schools to use their professional judgement to ensure the school curriculum meets the needs of their pupils. The computing curriculum covers e-safety at all four Key Stages, and was developed with input from e-safety experts including Childnet, NSPCC and the UK Safer Internet Centre. There is progression in the content across the four Key Stages to reflect the different and escalating risks that young people face as they get older.However, this is only part of the wider school curriculum. Schools have more freedom to teach subjects or topics, such as digital citizenship, beyond the prescribed curriculum to ensure that children receive a rounded education. Teachers also have access to a wide range of high quality resources produced by experts including advice published by the PSHE Association, the Sex Education Forum, and Brook. These address changes in technology and legislation since 2000, in particular equipping teachers to help protect children and young people from inappropriate online content, and from online bullying, harassment and exploitation.

Ministry of Justice

Civil Proceedings: Third Party Financing

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the rapid expansion of third party litigation, they plan to introduce statutory regulation of funders.

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it is the case that fewer than half the number of UK based firms, and no overseas based firms, have joined the Association of Litigation Funders; and what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the voluntary code of conduct drafted by the Association.

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to introduce regulations to ensure that third party litigation funders are subject to the same statutory duties and obligations as apply to law firms operating in the same field.

Lord Keen of Elie: The Government does not believe that the case has been made out for moving away from voluntary regulation, as agreed by Parliament during the passage of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. The market for third party litigation funding, remains at a relatively early stage in its development in this jurisdiction and we are not aware of specific concerns about the activities of litigation funders. The Government has not therefore undertaken a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the voluntary code of conduct or the membership of the Association of Litigation Funders. The last Government gave Parliament an assurance that it will keep third party litigation funding under review and this Government is ready to investigate matters further should the need arise.

Forensic Science: Legal Aid Scheme

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they plan to take in response to the comments in the Annual Report of the Forensic Science Regulator, published on 6 January, on current legal aid rates for experts and funding for forensic science cases, particularly for defence provision via legal aid.

Lord Keen of Elie: The Ministry of Justice and the Legal Aid Agency is working with the Forensic Science Regulator in order to further consider the issues raised in the report.

Prisons: Religious Practice

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they are working with prison chaplains and faith groups to protect prisoners’ right to practise their faith.

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the barriers to accessing chaplaincy in prisons.

Lord Keen of Elie: The Prison Service is committed to enabling prisoners to practice their religion, and all prisons have multi faith chaplaincy teams to enable and facilitate this. Instructions and guidance on religious practice in prisons is set out in PSI 5/2016 (Faith and Pastoral Care for Prisoners). Formal assurance visits (which include a focus group with prisoners) are made to each prison regularly by a member of the Chaplaincy HQ team to assure the Governor/Director and Head of Chaplaincy of compliance with the PSI. In this way, and through the use of the application system by which prisoners can request to see a Chaplain, any issues or barriers can be identified in a systematic way by local prison management and HQ. The Head of Chaplaincy meets regularly with Faith Advisers for the National Offender Management Service, as well as faith based organisations.

Prisons: Private Sector

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to monitor staffing in private prisons.

Lord Keen of Elie: Historically this information is not held, we are making arrangements to capture and monitor this data as management information. Private providers are required to maintain a sufficient number of staff, with the requisite level of skill and experience to ensure that the Prison is a safe, secure and decent environment. Privately Managed Prisons continue to play an important role in the prison estate and performance of all providers is closely monitored.

Prisons: Private Sector

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, of the planned recruitment of 2,500 new prison staff, how many new staff will be employed in private prisons; and how many of the estimated 5,500 staff required to replace staff retiring or leaving the service will be employed in private prisons.

Lord Keen of Elie: The planned recruitment of 2,500 new prison officers and estimated 5,500 replacements relates to public sector prison staff. Private providers are required to maintain a sufficient number of staff, with the requisite level of skill and experience to ensure that the Prison is a safe, secure and decent environment. We are engaging with private providers on how the new staffing model outlined in the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper will be implemented in private prisons.

Prison Officers

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, of the planned recruitment of new prison staff, what the estimated change will be in staff-to-prisoner ratios in (1) public sector, and (2) private, prisons.

Lord Keen of Elie: We want our prisons to be places where staff and prisoners alike feel safe and secure. The introduction of new ways of working to support prisoners to reform will achieve this while also increasing frontline staff numbers. Prison Governors will be empowered to set their establishment staffing numbers. They will determine the precise grade mix and deployment of staff into their establishment to meet the individual needs of their specific prisoner population, in line with set minimum service requirements which are aligned to the NOMS Offender Management model. Staff numbers will vary across establishments, dependant on prisoner population and type of prison. We have already invested £14 million to provide more than 400 extra staff in ten of the most challenging prisons and work is underway to finalise the new staffing levels required for each of these establishments.

Ministry of Defence

Armed Forces Covenant Reference Group: Northern Ireland

Lord Rogan: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Earl Howe on 9 January (HL Deb, col 1835), when they were first given notice that the Northern Ireland Executive had nominated an individual to the Armed Forces Reference Group, and what is the name of that individual.

Earl Howe: The hon. Member for Lagan Valley (Jeffrey Donaldson) wrote to my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General (Ben Gummer) on 21 October 2016 to advise that Mrs Brenda Hale MLA had been nominated to sit on the Armed Forces Covenant Reference Group as a Northern Ireland representative.

EU Defence Policy

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role the UK will play in the implementation of the decision made on 14 November 2016 by EU foreign and defence ministers to seek alignment of national defence planning.

Earl Howe: The Government's view is that NATO remains the cornerstone of European Defence. Rather than duplicating command structures, the priority for European Union (EU) member states should be to meet the two per cent commitment and to support better cooperation between NATO and the EU. In line with this, Conclusions at the 14 November 2016 EU Foreign Affairs Council (Defence), invited the High Representative/Vice President (HR/VP) to present proposals by spring 2017 for a Member State driven Coordinated Annual Review to aid better capability development and to improve synergies in defence spending. These Conclusions highlighted our key principles that Defence remains a Member State competence and the need for coherence with NATO. We will review the HR/VP's proposals in due course.

Army: Recruitment

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of the intake needed to maintain the British Army at its required fighting strength has been recruited in each of the last six years for which figures are available.

Earl Howe: Defence Statistics publish information on a regular basis showing intake figures for the Armed Forces, including the Army. The most recent information is contained in "UK Armed Forces Monthly Service Personnel Statistics November 2016" and associated tables which is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-armed-forces-monthly-service-personnel-statistics-index Official statistics for Regular recruitment targets which may be meaningfully compared to the official intake statistics are not produced.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans for upgrading British Army infantry fighting vehicles.

Earl Howe: The Warrior Capability Sustainment Programme will ensure the Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicle continues to provide the infantry with battle-winning capability for the future. Furthermore we are building an adaptive force to meet the range of future threats. Vehicle projects including Ajax (to support both the armoured infantry and new strike brigades), and the Challenger 2 life extension project, will be delivered in support of the new war fighting division as part of Joint Force 2025. I refer the noble Lord to the answer given by my hon. Friend, the Minister for Defence Procurement (Harriett Baldwin) on 18 January 2017 to Question 59929.



Ministry of Defence Armoured Fighting Vehicles
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Eastern Europe: Military Aircraft

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many times between 1 January and 31 December 2016 RAF aircraft flew air patrol sorties from Eastern European countries which are members of NATO; which countries those were; and what aircraft types were used.

Earl Howe: From 29 April to 1 September 2016, four RAF Typhoon aircraft deployed to the longstanding NATO Baltic Air Policing mission in Ämari, Estonia. During this period they were scrambled on 21 occasions and also undertook regular training sorties.The RAF E-3D Sentry Force is committed to NATO and provides 25 per cent of NATO airborne command and control capability. The fleet is routinely tasked by NATO to fly missions in Alliance airspace in Eastern Europe, providing airborne command, control and assurance.

Saudi Arabia: Cluster Munitions

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government in which year cluster bombs were last sold by UK companies to the government of Saudi Arabia; and how many were sold in that year.

Earl Howe: There were 500 UK-manufactured BL755 cluster munitions supplied to Saudi Arabia under a government-to-government agreement signed in 1986. The final delivery against this agreement was made in 1989.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many F-35B Sea Lightnings the UK currently owns; and whether there has been any change to (1) the number to be purchased in the financial year 2017–18, or (2) the planned date for forming the operational conversion unit.

Earl Howe: The Ministry of Defence does not recognise the term 'Sea Lightning', with 'F-35B Lightning II' the designation jointly agreed by the First Sea Lord and the Chief of the Air Staff. To date we have taken delivery of eight F-35B Lightning II aircraft. There has been no change to the number to be purchased in the financial year 2017-18, and the operational conversion unit is on track against the current delivery plan.

Astute Class Submarines

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the cost of the steel required to manufacture the Astute class submarines which are due to be commissioned between 2018 and 2024; and how that compares to the projected cost prior to the EU referendum.

Earl Howe: In the main, steel required for defence is sourced by our prime contractors across a variety of suppliers throughout the build programme and details of cost breakdowns are not held centrally.I can confirm, however, that the majority of the steel to be used in construction of the Astute Class Submarines due to be commissioned into the Royal Navy between 2018 and 2024 was purchased prior to the EU referendum, therefore no cost comparison would be applicable.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Social Enterprises

Lord Tebbit: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 10 January (HL Deb, col 1856), what is their definition of a social enterprise.

Lord Ashton of Hyde: Social enterprises are businesses with primarily social/environmental objectives, whose surpluses are principally reinvested for that purpose in the business or community rather than mainly being paid to shareholders or owners. We are currently refreshing our own government estimates of the nature and size of the social enterprise market in the UK, and we will publish our research early in 2017.

Social Enterprises

Lord Bird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the publication of Scotland'sSocial Enterprise Strategy 2016–2026 on 14 December 2016, what plans they have to (1) grow the social enterprise sector over the next 10 years, and (2) develop the UK’s position as a world leader in social enterprise.

Lord Ashton of Hyde: Charities and social enterprises play an important role in the government’s mission of building an economy that works for everyone. The government is building on its role as a world leader in social enterprise by championing procurement for social value, supporting social enterprise awareness campaigns, building the social investment market, using social enterprises to address issues at scale and expanding the social investment tax relief.

Home Office

Syria: Armed Conflict

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the number of foreign fighters who have left Syria, and of the proportion of them who may return to Europe.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Approximately 850 UK linked individuals of national security concern have travelled to engage with the Syrian conflict. We estimate that just under half have returned and approximately 15% are now dead. This number includes all those of national security concern, not just those affiliated with Daesh.We estimate that many foreign terrorist fighters from across Europe will choose to remain in the conflict zones, a significant proportion of which are likely to be killed in combat or join other extremist groups in the region. However some may attempt to return to their country of origin.

Refugees: Children

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they intend to take following the message by His Holiness Pope Francis on 8 September 2016 for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees on 15 January, in particular for the benefit of children.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Government acknowledges the importance of the message of His Holiness Pope Francis and the UK remains fully committed to playing our part in supporting refugees and tackling the migration crisis.From the outset of the crisis the UK has pushed for a comprehensive approach that focuses on the root causes of migration and has called for more action in source and transit countries to disrupt the smuggling networks, to improve local capacity to control borders, and to support sustainable livelihoods, both for people living there and for refugees. It is essential that we take action to support individuals affected by conflict in their region of origin, and do not encourage people to risk their lives by making dangerous journeys to Europe. This is why the Government has established the Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement Scheme, which will resettle up to 3,000 individuals from the Middle East and North Africa region by the end of this Parliament. This is in addition to our commitment to resettle 20,000 Syrians to the UK over the same time period. So far over 4,400 have arrived in the UK, around half of whom are children.The Government has committed £2.3 billion to the Syria crisis, over £70 million in response to the wider Mediterranean migration crisis, and we have established a £10 million Refugee Children Fund for Europe to support the needs of vulnerable refugee and migrant children arriving in Europe. In 2016, we also transferred over 900 unaccompanied asylum seeking children from within Europe to the UK. The Government recognises the particular vulnerabilities of child migrants and victims of modern slavery. This is why the Home Secretary launched in October 2016 a £3 million Child Trafficking Protection Fund aimed at reducing vulnerability to exploitation and victim support and recovery.

Refugees: English Language

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to increase the £10 million allotted to teaching English to Syrian refugees in Britain; and whether they will extend the scope of the programme to include resettled refugees of all origins.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The £10 million funding being rolled out to provide additional ESOL lessons to Syrians on the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) scheme is also intended to help those who arrive in the UK under the Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement (VCR) scheme which is for children and their families from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. English language tuition also forms part of the support package provided to beneficiaries of the Gateway Protection Programme.Other adults who are granted refugee status or humanitarian protection become eligible for government skills funding as any other UK resident and are not subject to the normal 3 year qualifying period.

Refugees: Employment

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what conclusions they have drawn from the pilot schemes to enable resettled refugees to obtain employment; and whether they will publicise best practice from the pilot schemes and other work by non-governmental organisations relating to the integration of refugees into British society.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: A pilot project to support those resettled under the VPRS and VCRS into employment is being established in Yorkshire and Humber. This pilot is based on a small private project that has been running, entirely independent of Government funding, in Bradford. A further pilot project to support those wishing to start their own small businesses is also underway: a number of families have been helped in Scotland, and preparations are in place for a second location in England. Any learning from the experience of the VPRS or the VCRS would be considered to inform our approach to the integration for refugees who arrive in the UK by other means.

Asylum: Children in Care

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the special thematic report by the Association of Directors of Children’s Services’ Safeguarding Pressures Phase 5, on unaccompanied asylum seeking and refugee children published on 3 November 2016, and of its finding that the higher funding rates available from 1 July 2016 are not sufficient to meet the full costs of caring for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Government significantly increased the funding provided to local authorities looking after Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC) in July 2016. These rates are based on a detailed analysis of financial information sent to the Home Office by local authorities about their actual cost of caring for Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children. That analysis showed the average cost across all local authorities of looking after an Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Child aged under 16 was approximately £41,610 per annum and the average cost of supporting those aged 16 and 17 was approximately £33,215 per annum. The Government has made additional funding available for local authorities through the Controlling Migration Fund.We have committed to regularly review the rates and will work with the Local Government Association, the Association of Directors of Children’s Services and local authorities to ensure their views form part of that review.

Asylum: Children in Care

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many local authorities have participated in the National Transfer Scheme; and how many unaccompanied asylum-seeking children have been transferred under the scheme since it began on 1 July 2016.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The National Transfer Scheme (NTS) was launched to ensure a more equitable distribution of unaccompanied asylum seeking children, and all regions of England are now participating. The response from local authorities has been positive so far and we continue to engage with local authorities across the UK to encourage more to participate so that the scheme can continue to achieve its aims of transferring unaccompanied children away from local authorities who are caring for a disproportionate number.

Entry Clearances

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the decision has been taken not to publish the annual number of immigration entry clearance visas granted to (1) licensed sponsoring employers, and (2) educational establishments, in the UK.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: I am sorry but we cannot publish the annual number of immigration entry clearance visas granted to licensed sponsors and educational establishments in the UK due to commercial sensitivity, data protection and costs. Entry clearance visas are not granted to sponsoring employers or sponsoring educational establishments, but to individuals. Information relating to individual sponsors would be commercially sensitive and could inadvertently disclose individuals. Further, releasing such information could cause commercial damage to the sponsoring organisation. Matching data between licensed organisations and individuals recorded on case working systems overseas and in the UK is not automatic and would incur disproportionate cost. However total numbers of entry clearance visas granted under Tiers 2, 4 and 5 are already published as part of the regular quarterly Immigration statistics available from the .GOV.UK website.

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking, in the context of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child, to ensure that the rights and interest of the child are paramount, especially when the immigration status of their parents is uncertain or precarious.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 ensures that the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children is taken into account in carrying out immigration, asylum and nationality functions. This reflects the UK’s support for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Article 3 of which requires the best interests of the child to be a primary consideration in actions that concern them. The Home Office underpins the primary legislation with provisions in the Immigration Rules and with policy and guidance for specific immigration functions affecting children.

Asylum: Children in Care

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Home Office funding to local authorities in respect of the costs of supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASCs) is available irrespective of whether a UASC is housed in local authority or private accommodation.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Home Office funding is available for unaccompanied asylum seeking children who are being looked after by local authorities because there is not a suitable adult to care for them.

Refugees: Children

Lord Dubs: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will extend the eligibility criteria to enter the UK for child refugees in France to those child refugees currently in Greece and Italy.

Lord Dubs: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many child refugees have come to the UK under (1) the Dublin III Regulation, and (2) section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: In 2016, we welcomed over 900 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children to the UK, including more than 750 from France as part of the UK’s support for the Calais camp clearance - almost half of the unaccompanied children who were in the camp at the time of the clearance. Approximately 200 of these children met the criteria for section 67 of the Immigration Act.More eligible children will be transferred from Europe, in line with the terms of the Immigration Act, in the coming months and we will continue to meet our obligations under the Dublin Regulation. The process and criteria for the transfer of children from Europe under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 will be published in due course.

Slavery

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they intend to publish guidance about identifying and supporting victims as set out in section 49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The National Referral Mechanism pilot is due to conclude March 2017 after which the full evaluation will be completed to help inform any potential reforms. The statutory guidance cannot be finalised until this process is complete and is being developed in consultation with NGOs and frontline agencies.

Slavery

Lord McColl of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the pilots on the National Referral Mechanism for victims of modern slavery will be concluded; when they intend to publish an evaluation of those pilots; and following the evaluation of those pilots, when plans for reform of the National Referral Mechanism will be published.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The National Referral Mechanism pilot is due to conclude March 2017 after which the full evaluation will be completed to help inform any potential reforms. The statutory guidance cannot be finalised until this process is complete and is being developed in consultation with NGOs and frontline agencies.

Sharia Law Independent Review

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to receive the report of the Independent Inquiry into the application of Sharia Law in the UK; and whether they intend to publish it.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The report from the review is expected later this year and the decision to publish the report will be for the Home Secretary.

Counter-terrorism

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to prevent the exclusion of particular faith communities when delivering the Counter-Extremism Strategy.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Counter-Extremism Strategy makes it clear that tackling extremism is not something that Government can do alone. The Government is engaging with a wide range of faith communities on delivery of the Strategy. Faith groups play a vital role in tackling hatred and intolerance in our communities and in promoting positive values. The Government will work in partnership with any group or individual that stands up to extremism and the harm it causes in our society.

Radicalism

Lord Murphy of Torfaen: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they define non-violent extremism.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Counter-Extremism Strategy, published last year, sets out the Government’s commitment to addressing all of the harms caused by extremists.In addition to terrorism, these harms can include advocating the segregation of communities; discrimination against women and girls and promotion of illegal practices like forced marriage; encouraging hatred of others; and the rejection of democracy and the rule of law. Extremists provide an ideological justification for these harms, which are fundamentally at odds with the values that underpin our society.

Refugees: Syria

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which department has overall responsibility for ensuring that 20,000 refugees from Syria are accepted into the UK by May 2020.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Refugee Resettlement Programme is responsible for ensuring that 20,000 refugees from Syria are resettled in the UK by 2020. The programme is the joint responsibility of the Home Office, the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Department for International Development.

Syed Muzaffar Shah Qadri

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 12 January (HL4256) concerning Syed Muzaffar Shah Qadri, what public interest is served in not answering a question about a case detailed in national newspapers; and in what circumstances they would comment on an individual case.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: In order to safeguard an individual’s personal information and comply with the Data Protection Act 1998, the Home Office is limited in terms of the information it can provide when a request is made by someone who is not the individual concerned. As a result, the Home Office does not routinely comment on individual cases. Exceptions may be made on a case by case basis where the individual themselves has made their immigration status public knowledge, and where it would be in the public interest to correct a specific statement that has been made.

Visas

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many visas for family reunion in the UK were issued in 2016 for (1) children, and (2) adult women; and how many such applications were rejected in that year.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Home Office regularly publishes statistics on family reunion applications (the latest of which as published in December 2016 and can be found:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-july-to-september-2016Beyond this, we are unable to provide a breakdown of the statistics by age/gender in the manner requested. In order to do so, the department would have to interrogate individual case records, at disproportionate cost.

Refugees: Children

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 10 January (HL4174), whether they will publish responses to the reports by (1) Help Refugees, Life for the Children of the Calais Jungle Post Eviction – An Uncertain Future, published on 15 December 2016, and (2) the Oasis Foundation, A Moral Imperative: The UK's Response to Unaccompanied Child Refugees.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: There are no plans to publish responses to these reports. The primary responsibility for unaccompanied children in Europe lies with the authorities in the country in which children are present. However, we continue to work with European and international partners to reach a solution to the migration crisis and the UK has contributed significantly to hosting, supporting and protecting the most vulnerable children. The Government has established a £10 million Refugee Children Fund to support the needs of vulnerable refugee and migrant children arriving in Europe and in the year ending September 2016, we granted asylum or another form of leave to over 8,000 children in the UK. In 2016 as a whole, we transferred over 900 unaccompanied asylum seeking children from within Europe to the UK. More eligible children will be transferred from Europe under the Immigration Act 2016 in the coming months and we will continue to meet our obligations under the Dublin Regulation to reunite asylum seeking children with their close families.

Refugees: Syria

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 29 November 2016 (HL2733), why they will not be publishing the religious and ethnic breakdown of those resettled under the Syrian vulnerable person resettlement programme.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The refugees that we are bringing to the United Kingdom are very vulnerable people. Our prime concern is their safety and protection as they arrive in this country. We believe that one way to protect their privacy and ensure their recovery and integration is to limit the amount of information about them that we make publicly available. In resettlement the UK works according to the humanitarian principles of impartiality and neutrality- which means that we do not take into consideration the ethno-religious origins of people requiring assistance as we resettle solely on the basis of needs, identified by UNHCR. We therefore do not believe it is appropriate to publish a religious and ethnic breakdown of those who have been resettled. Notwithstanding this the Home Office is committed to publishing data on arrivals in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Boarding Schools: Overseas Students

Lord Lansley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many children with a Tier 4 child category visa attend a UK boarding school.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Home Office IT database does not differentiate the types of Independent schools into sub-categories; it is therefore not possible to provide the information pertaining to boarding schools alone.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Lord Lansley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average time taken to process an application for a Tier 4 child visa.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The global average processing time for Tier 4 child visas for the last three years is set out in the table below:Year ResolvedAvg Processing Time (in working days)January – December 20148.24January – December 20157.41January – September 20166.45 These statistics have been taken from a live operational database. As such, numbers may change as information on that system is updated.

Overseas Students: Boarding Schools

Lord Lansley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether a child attending a UK boarding school from overseas is regarded as habitually resident in the UK if they return home outside term-time.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Whether a child has habitual residence in the UK is a question of fact to be determined depending on the child’s individual circumstances. While the arrangements for a child at a UK boarding school both during term time and during holiday periods will be relevant to the assessment, it is not possible to determine from this alone where the child’s habitual residence lies. A decision must be made on a case by case basis.

HM Treasury

Financial Services: Euro

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are seeking to retain euro clearing in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Euro-denominated clearing forms an important part of the overall financial structure in London. The Government will continue to consult with stakeholders and do what it takes to ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of the financial industry.

Financial Services

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are taking steps to put in place transitional measures for the UK's financial services to cover the time between the UK leaving the EU and the implementation of the UK's exit agreement.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: As the Prime Minister has said, it is in no one’s interests for there to be a cliff-edge for business or a threat to stability as we change from our existing relationship to a new partnership with the EU.The Prime Minister set out the government’s ambition to reach an agreement about our future partnership by the time the 2 year Article 50 process is concluded, followed by a phased process of implementation, in which both Britain and the EU institutions and member states prepare for the new arrangements that will exist between us.

Financial Services

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions are taking place with the financial services industry and regulators on the UK's future negotiations with the EU on retaining passporting or on potential alternatives under WTO–GATS post UK withdrawal from the EU.

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions are taking place with the UK financial services industry as to how they would adapt to the WTO General Agreement on Trade and Services should this be necessary.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The UK’s financial services industry plays a vital role in the UK, European and global economies, which benefits customers and businesses around the world.Government ministers have met with a full range of institutions from across our financial services sector. This includes bilateral meetings with firms and regulators, as well as roundtables with groups of industry representatives.These meetings have enabled the Government to fully understand the opportunities and risks which have been identified by the sector as the UK leaves the EU, and has included discussion with firms about different scenarios.We are determined to secure the best possible deal for UK goods and services – including financial services - in our negotiations to leave the EU.

UK Trade with EU

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 9 January (HL4371), whether they will now provide figures to answer the question asked.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: I have nothing to add to the answer given on 9th January 2017 (HL4371). The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Department for Exiting the European Union (Lord Bridges of Headley), updated the House on our plans for EU exit on 17 January.

Sterling

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking in response to the fall in the value of the pound sterling; and what is their response to the reported intentions of some companies to raise the price of certain supermarket products to offset this fall.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Government has a target for inflation, rather than the exchange rate, and does not comment on currency movements.Monetary policy is the responsibility of the independent Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England. The MPC has the primary objective, set out in law, of maintaining price stability and therefore monitors the general level of prices. Pricing decisions of individual retailers are taken on a commercial basis, and the Government does not seek to comment on these decisions.

Consumers: Expenditure

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to encourage consumer spending during the period of negotiations for leaving the EU.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Consumer spending is proving to be resilient, growing by 2.6% in Q3 2016 compared to Q3 2015. The OBR forecast household consumption will continue to grow in 2017 and onwards. The government is taking targeted action to help people’s money go further: freezing fuel duty, providing affordable housing, raising the personal allowance and the National Living Wage.

Cabinet Office

British Nationals Abroad: Voting Rights

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the announcement on 7 October that they intend to remove the 15-year rule on British citizens living overseas voting in parliamentary elections, whether expatriate UK citizens would also be entitled to participate in any future referendums.

Lord Young of Cookham: The franchise for any future referendum would be determined by Parliament in the primary legislation which provides for that referendum.

Political Parties: Cybercrime

Lord Rennard: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have advised UK political parties of the potential threat of cyber-attacks of the kind allegedly made recently by foreign security services in countries such as the USA, Sweden and Germany.

Lord Young of Cookham: All UK organisations are responsible for protecting their information and preventing hostile actors from acquiring that data. Political parties can, and should, take steps to ensure their systems are suitably protected. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) offers UK organisations access to the best cyber security advice and support. This advice, if correctly implemented, goes a long way to reducing the prospect of compromise or data loss.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, where one department has provided information in the response to a Question for Written Answer, whether they would expect other departments to answer a similar question in a similar manner.

Lord Young of Cookham: The content of each answer is a matter for the Minister concerned, and each Minister is responsible to the House for the answers they provide. Answers to similar questions asked of different Departments can vary.

Department of Health

Tomography

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government (1) what is the average NHS patient waiting time for the results of diagnostic scans, (2) how much of this waiting time is due to NHS technician staff shortages, and (3) how much delays in early diagnosis as a result of waiting times are estimated to cost the NHS.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: Average median waiting times from general practitioner (GP) referral to the patient receiving the test are published for diagnostic imaging scans every month by NHS England, most recently for November 2016, and are shown in the following table. Waiting times between the tests being performed and the results being conveyed to the patient are not published centrally. Average median waiting times from GP referral to test for diagnostic imaging scans, November 2016Imaging scanWaiting time in weeksMagnetic resonance imaging2.0Computerised tomography1.6Non obstetric ultrasound1.9Barium Enema1.5Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry1.8Source: Diagnostic waiting times, NHS England No assessment has been made of how much of the waiting time is attributable to National Health Service technician staff shortages, or of how much delays in early diagnosis are estimated to cost the NHS.

Pensioners: Health Services

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government (1) what are the current arrangements for quantifying the amount paid by the UK to the Republic of Ireland and by the Republic of Ireland to the UK for the healthcare costs of resident pensioners; (2) what were the amounts paid by the UK and the Republic of Ireland in the last three years; (3) how many UK and Irish pensioners are involved; and (4) when the system will next be reviewed.

Lord O'Shaughnessy: The basis on which pensioner figures are calculated was included in a letter of 11 July 2011 to Ireland’s Department of Health and Children. The relevant section of that letter is included below: “Reimbursement arrangements for 2010-2013 For 2010-2013, we agreed that we would not pursue the use of another triennial survey, which otherwise would have been due. As an alternative arrangements, we have agreed that between 2010 and 2013, UK liability to Ireland (currently 40%) will fall, year on year, by 1.13%. This figure was agreed after both parties noted an average downward trend in UK liability for dual pensioners since the start of the bilateral agreement in 1971. As a result, UK liability will be 35.48% by 2013. Applying the same principle, Irish liability will stand at 4.44%. We agreed that such a deal would provide a logical and pragmatic approach; remove the need to enter negotiations about Department for Work and Pensions resource for a triennial survey (along with your equivalent), and see an end to protracted negotiations regarding pensioner numbers and categories of UK liability for those years.” This 1.13% reduction in United Kingdom liability was extended through to 2016, resulting in a current UK liability of 32.09% of UK pensioners living in Ireland. Following negotiations with Ireland, UK liability for 2016 was based on an estimated baseline number of 109,000 UK state pensioners and Ireland’s liability is based on being responsible for 3.15% of an estimated baseline number of 40,000 Irish state pensioners living in the UK. Discussions on new arrangements to determine respective pensioner numbers for 2017 will begin this year. The UK’s estimated income and expenditure for healthcare activity in the past three years as it relates to UK and Irish pensioners is in the table below:  2013/142014/152015/16Expenditure£223,761,423£200,591,178£168,069,004Income£6,707,569£4,422,239£4,423,115.93 Source: Resource Accounting and Budgeting exercise. Totals are based on estimates of the costs of European Economic Area healthcare claims made annually for the purposes of provisions made in the Department of Health accounts in accordance with Treasury resource accounting rules.